Athletic Shoe with Retractable Sole

ABSTRACT

A shoe to be worn by a user may include a bottom portion of the shoe, an upper portion of the shoe, and a roller guide to movably connect the bottom portion of the shoe to the top portion of the shoe.

PRIORITY

The present application claims priority under 35 USC section 119 and based upon a provisional application 61/552,322 which was filed on Oct. 27, 2011

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This disclosure relates generally to an apparatus for an athletic shoe and more particularly to an athletic shoe sole designed to move in accordance with an applied predetermined longitudinal anterior directional force.

BACKGROUND

Every year professional and amateur athletes of all ages suffer from debilitating knee injuries. Contact sports contribute to a large number of these injuries. Anterior Crucial Ligament (ACL) tears are common and frequent for athletics at all levels of activity from professional to leisure. A frontal impact at the knee can easily result in an ACL tear.

In the past a patent (U.S. Pat. No. 7,254,905 B2) Releasable Athletic Shoe Sole was issued for a shoe that had independently moving parts. It also was designed to move when a predetermined force is applied. It refers to components such as shear pins and spot welds. Reference is also made to an alternative embodiment wherein release is only temporary. Another similarity is referenced in that configuration of the longitudinal guiding element could vary within the scope of the invention.

SUMMARY

A shoe to be worn by a user may include a bottom portion of the shoe, an upper portion of the shoe, and a roller guide to movably connect the bottom portion of the shoe to the top portion of the shoe.

The roller guide may be flexible.

The roller guide may be trapezoidal shaped.

The roller guide may include a roller bearing.

The roller guide may be detachably connected to the upper portion.

The shoe may include a biasing device to connect to the roller guide.

The biasing device may be a spring.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which, like reference numerals identify like elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a top view of the shoe of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a side view of the shoe of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a side view of the shoe of the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates a back view of the shoe of the present invention;

FIG. 5 illustrates a back view of the shoe of the present invention;

FIG. 6 illustrates a top view of the roller guide of the present invention;

FIG. 7 illustrates a bottom view of the roller guide of the present invention;

FIG. 8 illustrates a back view of the roller guide of the present invention;

FIG. 9 illustrates a top view of the bottom portion of the shoe of the present invention;

FIG. 10 illustrates a back view of the bottom portion of the shoe of the present invention;

FIG. 11 illustrates a bottom view of the bottom portion and roller guide of the present invention;

FIG. 12 illustrates a top view of the top portion and bottom portion of the shoe of the present invention;

FIG. 13 illustrates a bottom rear view of the top portion, bottom portion and roller guide of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An athletic shoe of the present invention may be designed to move rearwards when a frontal impact occurs to significantly reduce or completely circumvent the severity and/or occurrence of an ACL injury.

The present invention includes a sole plate or bottom portion 111 of the shoe 101 which may moves independently from the upper shoe or top portion 103 of the shoe 101 which surrounds the foot. The present invention may include, at the core of the shoe, a trapezoidal shaped flexible roller guide 101 that houses roller bearings 105. The roller guide 101 may be flexible and may move within the sole or the bottom portion 111 of the shoe 100, and the roller guide 101 may be connected the upper part or the top portion 103 of the shoe 100. The present invention allows the top portion 103 of the shoe 100 to move or slide with respect to the bottom portion 111 and overcomes extreme forces and friction. An athlete can generate as much as two thousand pounds of force to the ground while running full speed. If an impact should occur at this precise moment, and often does, the result may be an injury such as a knee injury.

The roller guide 101 may be permanently or detachably connected attached to the bottom surface of the upper shoe (part A) or top portion 103. The upper shoe or top portion 103 along with the roller guide 101, as a together, move or slide back and forth in the trapezoidal groove 113 (which may be a rectangular groove or channel) in the lower sole plate or bottom portion 111 of the shoe 100 (part C). Internally at the front of the trapezoidal groove 113, a biasing device 115 which may be a spring may be connected to the front of the roller guide 101 (part B) and the other end of the biasing device 115 or spring may be connected to the front toe section of the sole plate or the bottom portion 111 (part C). This allows the roller guide to move under a predetermined force or impact and then retract to its original position in a fraction of a second.

The ability of the upper shoe (Part A) or the top portion 103 of the shoe 100 to move independently to a extended position or first position from the sole (Part C) or the bottom portion 111 of the shoe 100 upon impact, irrespective of downward force, and then retract back to the original position (second position) due to the bias of the biasing device 115 or spring. The present invention may eliminate and/or significantly reduce the severity of knee injuries.

FIG. 1 illustrates a top view of the top portion 103 of the shoe 100 which may be any type of athletic shoe such as for a shoe for football, basketball, baseball, or other such sport. The top portion 103 may be formed from flexible material such as leather, plastic or other appropriate materials.

FIG. 2 illustrates a side view of the top portion 103 of the shoe 100 which may be connected to a roller guide 101 which may be connected to a biasing device 115. The roller guide may include one or multiple roller bearing 105 which may extend and align longitudinally on the roller guide 101. The roller guide 101 maybe formed from flexible material such as leather, plastic or other such material.

FIG. 3 illustrates a side view of the shoe 100 which may include the top portion 103 and may include the bottom portion 111. The bottom portion 111 maybe formed from flexible material such as leather, plastic or other such material.

FIG. 4 illustrates a back view of the shoe 100 which may include the top portion 103 and the roller guide 101 which may include inclined side surfaces 117 which may be at an acute angle and incline inwards from the bottom to the top.

FIG. 5 illustrates a back view of the shoe 100 which may include the top portion 103, the bottom portion 111 and the roller guide 101 which may include inclined side surfaces 117 which may be at an acute angle and incline inwards from the bottom to the top. The bottom portion 111 may include a channel or groove 113 and may include inclined side surfaces 119 to cooperate with the inclined side surfaces 117.

FIG. 6 illustrates by a top view, the roller guide 101 which may include the roller bearings 105 which may rotate on a shaft (not shown). The roller bearings 105 may be formed from rigid material such as wood, metal, plastic or other such material. The roller guide 101 may be connected to a biasing device 115 which may be formed from coiled steel, metal or other appropriate material.

FIG. 7 illustrates, by a bottom view, the roller guide 101 which may include the roller bearings 105 which may rotate on a shaft (not shown) within a bearing aperture 109 which may extend through the roller guide 101. The roller bearings 105 may be formed from rigid material such as wood, metal, plastic or other such material. The roller guide 101 may be connected to a biasing device 115 which may be formed from coiled steel, metal or other appropriate material.

FIG. 8 illustrates a back view of the roller guide 101 and illustrates inclined side surface 117 and the roller bearings 105.

FIG. 9 illustrates a top view of the bottom portion 111 of the shoe 100 and illustrates the channel 113 which may include a narrow portion 121 which may extend longitudinally and connect to the wide portion 123 which may extend longitudinally.

FIG. 10 illustrates a back view of the bottom portion 111 of the shoe 100 and illustrates the channel 113 which may include a narrow portion 121 which may extend longitudinally and connect to the wide portion 123 which may extend longitudinally. FIG. 10 additionally illustrates the inclined side surfaces 119 which may define the channel 113.

FIG. 11 illustrates a bottom view of the top portion 103 of the shoe 100. FIG. 11 illustrates. by a bottom view, the roller guide 101 which may be connected to the top portion 103 and which may include the roller bearings 105 which may rotate on a shaft (not shown) within a bearing aperture 109 which may extend through the roller guide 101.

FIG. 12 illustrates the assembled shoe 100 in a top view and illustrates the top portion 103, the bottom portion 111, the roller guide 101 and the channel 113.

FIG. 13 illustrates the assembled shoe 100 in a rear bottom view and illustrates the top portion 103, the bottom portion 111, the roller guide 101 and the channel 113.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the description herein of specific embodiments is not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed. 

1. A shoe to be worn by a user, comprising: a bottom portion of the shoe; an upper portion of the shoe; a roller guide to movably connect the bottom portion of the shoe to the top portion of the shoe.
 2. A shoe to be worn by a user as in claim 1, wherein the roller guide is flexible.
 3. A shoe to be worn by a user as in claim 1, wherein the roller guide is trapezoidal shaped.
 4. A shoe to be worn by a user as in claim 1, wherein the roller guide includes a roller bearing.
 5. A shoe to be worn by a user as in claim 1, wherein the roller guide is detachably connected to the upper portion.
 6. A shoe to be worn by a user as in claim 1, wherein the shoe includes a biasing device to connect to the roller guide.
 7. A shoe to be worn by a user as in claim 6, wherein the biasing device is a spring. 